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Daycare Center and Family Home Forum>Can You All Help Me With Some Clarification Re ECE?
MyAngels 07:40 AM 10-18-2011
After reading a lot on this forum I've become curious about the different types of early childhood education available out there. I went to my local colleges' websites and now I'm a little confused. There are a bunch of different designations - certificates, credentials and degrees.

Can any of you shed some light on what each of these things mean? Is there a national standard, or is it more of a local or state thing?

Obviously the degrees are the more difficult and expensive to obtain, and I'm wondering what they qualify you to do professionally.

I'm also curious as to how the certificates and credentials fit in.

TIA.
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dEHmom 09:02 AM 10-18-2011
I am not too clear on all these, especially the differences between USA and Canada, but I know this....


In home daycare ECE means nothing. Waste of money. It's just a very expensive course and it's designed for daycare CENTERS, not for inhome childcare.

There is a course which has varying names along the lines of group home childcare. This is the correct course which actually is much more informative, and beneficial to an in home childcare setting.
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Blackcat31 09:25 AM 10-18-2011
Students may choose to pursue one or several options within the Early Childhood Development program:
-- Certificate, 16 credits
-- Diploma, 36 credits
-- Associate in Applied Science (A.A.S.) Degree, 63 credits
-- Associate in Science (A.S.) Degree, 64 credits

The Certificate basically just says you have taken courses in ECE and have enough knowledge to work as a daycare aide (or possibly look great on your resume ?) .

The diploma for 36 credits is just more training but generally allows you to be a teachers assistant or classroom aide.

The A.A.S degree and A.S degree are two year degrees that allow you to be a teacher in a preschool or work as a teacher in a center

The A.S degree is intended for students who plan on moving on to a Bachelor's degree and includes more specified coursework.

This info may vary by state but this is how it was explained to me. Hope it helps.
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Ariana 09:34 AM 10-18-2011
Originally Posted by dEHmom:
I am not too clear on all these, especially the differences between USA and Canada, but I know this....


In home daycare ECE means nothing. Waste of money. It's just a very expensive course and it's designed for daycare CENTERS, not for inhome childcare.

There is a course which has varying names along the lines of group home childcare. This is the correct course which actually is much more informative, and beneficial to an in home childcare setting.
I'm not sure if you are an ECE or not but this information is not correct. An ECE is someone who is qualified to teach young children under the age of 6. Whether you run a home daycare or not is a moot point. If a parent wants someone educated in the field to take care of their children they would choose someone with an ECE. An ECE is someone who has learned about behavior management, working with children with special needs, child developmental stages, how to be a professional and here in Ontario you are bound by the College of Early Childhood Educators and their code of ethics. Also in Ontario it qualifies you to work in home daycare's, daycare centres, and kindergarten classrooms. Here in Canada an ECE can either have a 3 yr degree or a 2-3 yr Diploma. They're both treated the same. Someone who was to persue a degree would likely be interested in continuing on to get a masters etc in the field.

In the USA (from what I understand) degrees and certificates mean a different place on the hierarchy. People with diplomas can be teaching assistants and people with degrees can be head teachers. When my husband was thinking about transferring to the USA I checked around and it definately seems to vary by the State.
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dEHmom 09:45 AM 10-18-2011
Originally Posted by Ariana:
I'm not sure if you are an ECE or not but this information is not correct. An ECE is someone who is qualified to teach young children under the age of 6. Whether you run a home daycare or not is a moot point. If a parent wants someone educated in the field to take care of their children they would choose someone with an ECE. An ECE is someone who has learned about behavior management, working with children with special needs, child developmental stages, how to be a professional and here in Ontario you are bound by the College of Early Childhood Educators and their code of ethics. Also in Ontario it qualifies you to work in home daycare's, daycare centres, and kindergarten classrooms. Here in Canada an ECE can either have a 3 yr degree or a 2-3 yr Diploma. They're both treated the same. Someone who was to persue a degree would likely be interested in continuing on to get a masters etc in the field.

In the USA (from what I understand) degrees and certificates mean a different place on the hierarchy. People with diplomas can be teaching assistants and people with degrees can be head teachers. When my husband was thinking about transferring to the USA I checked around and it definately seems to vary by the State.
I am not knocking the course at all. It's a great course, but if you are simply running an in home daycare, the ECE means nothing. It's great as background, but ultimately, it's just a very expensive unnecessary course. I'm not saying that it's useless, just not necessary. It's what you need if you want to be in a center, or as you stated, continue on with a field such as an Aide. And as I highlighted above, for children UNDER the age of 6. MOST licensed daycare homes have a much broader age range, and it doesn't help you much. The group home childcare course has alot more to offer, for a fraction of the cost of obtaining an ECE. Does that make sense?

At least that's how it is looked upon here. Even the daycare coordinator here told me not to bother with that, because it's a waste of time and money if I only intend on remaining a home daycare.
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Ariana 10:00 AM 10-18-2011
Originally Posted by dEHmom:
I am not knocking the course at all. It's a great course, but if you are simply running an in home daycare, the ECE means nothing. It's great as background, but ultimately, it's just a very expensive unnecessary course. I'm not saying that it's useless, just not necessary. It's what you need if you want to be in a center, or as you stated, continue on with a field such as an Aide. And as I highlighted above, for children UNDER the age of 6. MOST licensed daycare homes have a much broader age range, and it doesn't help you much. The group home childcare course has alot more to offer, for a fraction of the cost of obtaining an ECE. Does that make sense?

At least that's how it is looked upon here. Even the daycare coordinator here told me not to bother with that, because it's a waste of time and money if I only intend on remaining a home daycare.
Yes I totally understand what you're saying! It's definately not a necessary course especially when anyone can run a home daycare. I won't get into a huge debate about it but I definately think some education should be a requirement when working with kids.

Oh and I should correct myself!! An ECE is qualified to work with school age children as well not just under 6. I meant for centre care it's under 6
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newtodaycare22 11:12 AM 10-18-2011
I have MD state certification in Early Childhood Education, which means I am licensed to teach Pre-K through 3rd grade. Each state is different. I would look up your department of education. Our child care facilities are also licensed by the dept. of educ. but there are specific courses you have to take to open a daycare (unless you already have an acceptable degree)
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My Daycare 11:13 AM 10-18-2011
Here is a link that you may be interested in if you have not seen it already. It's just something I skimmed over once. I really don't know anything about it.

http://www.ilgateways.com/

and this link is interesting....... http://www.ilgateways.com/en/great-s...lemental-scale

I think I saw you in a recent IL thread. If not ignore links.
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Blackcat31 11:21 AM 10-18-2011
Originally Posted by newtodaycare22:
I have MD state certification in Early Childhood Education, which means I am licensed to teach Pre-K through 3rd grade. Each state is different. I would look up your department of education. Our child care facilities are also licensed by the dept. of educ. but there are specific courses you have to take to open a daycare (unless you already have an acceptable degree)
What kind of coursework did you need to take to become state certified?

In MN you cannot teach Birth-Grade 3 without a Bachelor's degree and licensure (which is in addition to the Bachelor's degree)

Funny how every state is different.
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MyAngels 11:29 AM 10-18-2011
Thanks so much for all of your input, I really appreciate it.

I've just found myself thinking about this more and more the older I get (I'm 47). I got into daycare for the same reasons that many people do, I really wanted to have an income but I missed being with my kids, and I've been quite successful at it (if I do say so myself ) with only minimal training in the field.

But my kids are grown now and will soon be completely on their own, so I'm faced with a decision. Do I keep on with the status quo or try to take this to a new level?

I've always been intrigued with the idea of a small home-like center, but I was never willing to take that financial risk when my kids were young. Now that DH and I are older we're more financially secure as well, so I can see being able to afford to do this within the next few years.

Any and all advice or input are definitely appreciated .
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Crystal 12:37 PM 10-18-2011
I started back to school a few years ago. I have been a family child care provider for almost 15 years. I decided to go back to school because I personally wanted to improve the quality of care I provide and to truly understand the development of children.

Going back to school was one of the best things I have ever done. It has opened MANY doors for me that have increased my income and provided me opportunties I never knew existed. Aside from greatly improving my own program, So far my education has allowed me:

to become an environmental rating scale assessor for our R&R
to become an independent consultant for Head Start
to become a Mentor Teacher for the Ca. Early Childhood mentor program and work as a lab school for the local colleges....I have two to three students working in my program each semester
to develop and present workshops for the mentor program
to plan and present at the annual retreat/seminar for the mentor program

and many other things....and I get paid for all of the things I have listed. I couldn't have done any of these things without the education. I could have continued to be a child care provider, but I am also looking toward the future....I know I won't be a provider forever and let's face it, there's no retirement in this work.

So, I am now working on my Master's Degree. I will graduate in May 2013 and will be able to teach at the college level.

Whatever you decide to do...good luck...and if you decide to go to school, trust me, it's all worth it!
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MyAngels 03:08 PM 10-18-2011
Originally Posted by Crystal:
I started back to school a few years ago. I have been a family child care provider for almost 15 years. I decided to go back to school because I personally wanted to improve the quality of care I provide and to truly understand the development of children.

Going back to school was one of the best things I have ever done. It has opened MANY doors for me that have increased my income and provided me opportunties I never knew existed. Aside from greatly improving my own program, So far my education has allowed me:

to become an environmental rating scale assessor for our R&R
to become an independent consultant for Head Start
to become a Mentor Teacher for the Ca. Early Childhood mentor program and work as a lab school for the local colleges....I have two to three students working in my program each semester
to develop and present workshops for the mentor program
to plan and present at the annual retreat/seminar for the mentor program

and many other things....and I get paid for all of the things I have listed. I couldn't have done any of these things without the education. I could have continued to be a child care provider, but I am also looking toward the future....I know I won't be a provider forever and let's face it, there's no retirement in this work.

So, I am now working on my Master's Degree. I will graduate in May 2013 and will be able to teach at the college level.

Whatever you decide to do...good luck...and if you decide to go to school, trust me, it's all worth it!
Thanks for sharing this, and congratulations on the upcoming master's - that's quite an accomplishment!

Did you continue to provide child care during the time you went to school? Were you able to maintain a full-time school schedule if you did?
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Crystal 03:34 PM 10-18-2011
Yes....I provided full time care, up to 12 hours per day while going to school. I took on-line, evening and weekend classes. I am still providing full-time care and go to school on Saturdays and Sundays from 9-5 every two weeks. Yes, I have kept a full 12-15 units school schedule the whole time.

BTW, I am licensed for 14 and my hubby is my full-time assistant.

I do homework and reading during naptime and in the evenings.
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Tags:classes, development, early childhood education, ece
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